The Forbidden Kingdom

This is primarily a family-film, but the cinematography is unbelievably ethereal and the costumes are spectacular. Chinese films have always been a sight to see when it comes to presentation and performance: they are indeed one of the great masters at story-telling.

I once again have to remark over Peter Pau's wonderful cinematography. The man deserves and oscar.

This pleasantly written fairy tale takes the best of the gong fu genre and makes use of allegory to deliver a message on many levels.
I recommend it highly, and some day I would love to me Mr. Jacky Chan.

Best,
Dr. Nicholas A. Sceusa

Three stars? Three and a half stars? On one hand, it's formulaic stuff. On the other hand, it pairs up Jackie Chan and Jet Li for the first time...

I had a sinking feeling a while ago, when I saw that this movie was being promoted with the youngsters in mind. Turns out, THE FORBIDDEN KINGDOM is good enough that I'm glad I got the chance to see it, and to enjoy it for what it is, which is a decent but routine and defanged martial arts picture aimed at kids. But should fans of Jet Li and Jackie Chan feel cheated? Maybe. Probably.

The premise revolves around Jason Tripitkas (Michael Angarano), a bullied Boston teenager who is geeked about all things wushu, to the extent that he hangs out a lot at a shabby Chinese shop in search of bootleg kung fu movies. An unconvincing chain of events transports this kid back in time to an enchanted ancient China, during the reign of heavenly emperors, mighty warlords and the legendary Monkey King. Jason ends up with the Monkey King's staff and unwillingly sets off on a quest to free the trapped Monkey King, who had been transformed into stone. It's the only way Jason can get home.

The kid meets and is taken under the wing of the tatterred, boozy Lu Yan (Chan), one of the eight Immortals, with this particular Immortal's powers stemming from a constant intake of wine (those who've already seen Drunken Master will get a refresher course on drunken-fist kung fu). Some time in the movie, Jet Li's white-robed Silent Monk shows up and, along with Lu Yan, strives to mentor the kid (cue in flashes of THE KARATE KID). And naturally there's also a beautiful but troubled orphan girl named Golden Sparrow, who's out to revenge her murdered parents. And Sparrow touts a mean martial arts skill set. These four end up challenging the fearsome Jade Warlord, who rules ancient China with an iron fist and who can magically influence earth (he was the one who transformed the Monkey King into a stone statue). The Jade Warlord right away shows the potential to be a pretty formidable big bad, but in the end the predictable storyline renders him mediocre.

Thing is, THE FORBIDDEN KINGDOM is much less than what I expected from a first teaming up of Jet Li and Jackie Chan. These two icons deserve more. It would've been wicked cool if they'd landed a richer, more ambitious, more epic story. Something with a more emotional and philosophical core. An R Rating also would've elevated this film, possibly have made it darker and more intense in tone. Instead of this lightweight product, which is entertaining, but is still fluff. The movie also instantly lost credibility points with me when the main protagonist turned out to be this American kid, and that the bookend scenes took place in the U.S. No knock on the kid, 'cause he was okay, but I can't help but feel that this collaboration would've been better served - would've resonated more - if filmed in the East and in Chan and Li's native tongue. Because then they would've been fully in their element. In this movie, Jackie Chan's accent is thick enough that, most times, I couldn't understand his lines; I was craving sub-titles so bad. By doing it the way they did, the film certainly takes advantage of the two stars' crossover appeal. But a measure of integrity and street cred slips away. Was I expecting too much, hoping for a meaningful movie?

The very best parts, it shouldn't be a surprise, are the action sequences, with the riveting one-on-one tussle between Jackie and Jet shaming the other fight scenes (although Jackie's tavern brawl is also nice). It does shock me a bit that both of these guys are still so limber and athletic; I believe Jackie was 54 years old at the time and Jet, 45. But then, with action choreographer Woo-Ping Yuen in charge, we're talking first rate wire-fu stuff here. Jet is quite good as the Silent Monk (he scatters a few words here and there) and also as the cheeky, mystical Monkey King. Note that Jackie also plays two roles, although his old shopkeeper isn't really a very sexy part. However, his inebriated Immortal is certainly showy enough. Jackie and Jet's moments together make for intriguing viewing, not so much because they're tearing up the scenery or anything, but more because of the historical significance. Throughout the watching of the film, I couldn't quite believe that someone had finally managed to get these two together.

Yifei Liu plays Golden Sparrow, who annoyingly refers to herself in the third person. Bingbing Li is the Jade Warlord's accomplice Ni Chang, who will remind old-schoolers of the classic The Bride With White Hair. I read that these two girls, who are big names in the East, didn't have an extensive background in the martial arts, but that they trained their you-know-whats off and, on screen, they end up looking like they know what they're doing. They're quite graceful.

There are bits of humor present, mostly provided by Jackie Chan's Lu Yan. The funniest bit takes place when Lu Yan, in the scorching desert, prays for water and then kind of has his wish granted. In a way, what happens to Lu Yan in that scene is kind of how I feel the hardcore martial arts fans were treated.

The visuals are very good, but don't quite achieve the spectacular poetry of HERO or HOUSE OF FLYING DAGGERS or CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON. The CGI stuff here is okay, but, honestly, I would've bartered the computer effects for more of Jackie and Jet in action. They may now be older and greyer and less spry, but you won't convince me that they can't still qualify as walking, breathing, kicking, punching, flippin' human highlights.

If you're craving family film fluff, then THE FORBIDDEN KINGDOM is made to order. But if you're a diehard fan of Jet Li and Jackie Chan, you might not help but feel a bit cheated.

I'm not a huge fan of Chinese mythos and didn't know the story of the Monkey king for anything of that nature, but Jackie Chan and Jet Li, you can't go wrong with two of the worlds greatest martial artists signing on. I was surprised the story revolved around a kid from America, I did not see that coming, but overall I think it is a fun tail. And the special features are excellent too. Overall: fun for kids of all ages.

The Forbidden Kingdom (Two-Disc Special Edition + Digital Copy)

A fun fairy tale with Jet Li and Jackie Chan. Lots of Chinese fantasy fighting.